Bechtler Museum of Modern Art - a field trip

We had a chance today to stop by Charlotte's Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. A long overdue field trip to the city's premier and shiny new example of truly modern Architecture. It was a feast of modernity both in building and art. And it was a momentary experience of urban life. As much as we critiqued and questioned all we saw, we were thankful for Charlotte offering a glimpse of the great city it seems to be growing into; with public transportation, plazas, a bustling street life and tightly woven multi-functional common spaces. It was blissful.

We leave the critique of the art and architecture to both of our more eloquent friends Manoj Kesavan and Phillip Larrimore (see links below). However, we shall say that Mario Botta's design allowed us to marvel at architecture, art and the city all at the same time. It's openess and constant views to the urban surroundings was pleasant. As were the occasional interior views through the building itself that let us experience the structure throughout the visit.

As for the art, we were excited about the playful mingling of truly wonderful examples of modern art centered roughly around the middle of the 20th century. An unassuming arrangement that allowed us to see each piece freshly and with a presence you would see in Bechtler's own residence.

The art itself also inspired us to lengthy excursions into our own work and aspirations both in our architecture, as well as our Dialect Nights. We drew fresh energy and ideas out of an art that was often structural, sculptural, searching and experimental. The art certainly was touching in its energy and trust in skill.

Thank you Bechtler Museum for making us feel at home, both as citizens and modern architects in Charlotte.

Bechtler Museum of Modern Art
Charlotte Magazine - Manoj Kesavan

Charlotte Viewpoint - Phillip Larrimore

From the Charlotte Observer: "Bechtler evokes feel of New York in Charlotte - 20th-century modern art museum is a first for the Southeast."

From the front page of the Charlotte Observer this morning:
"With a splash of color, whimsy and fun, the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art opened Saturday - moving Charlotte into a new artistic league.
More than 5,000 visitors from across the Carolinas filled the four floors of the building, waiting in lines that spilled out of the lobby and into the adjoining Knight Theater.
"Cool," said 5-year-old Whit Wright of Charlotte, grinning as he danced around a rhythmically rocking sculpture by Jean Tinguely.
"Sexual," said Charlottean Tyler Lee, 30, gesturing toward a maze of abstract body parts woven into a Picasso tapestry.
"Amazing," said art history student Catherine Holt, 25, of Charlotte, who for years has heard teachers preach the importance of seeing art in person. On Saturday, she saw her first Edgar Degas original and said she knows now how right they were.
After a chilly ribbon-cutting outside around noon, visitors got in free to the Southeast's only museum dedicated to 20th-century modern art.
Many of the 116 pieces on display - drawn from a collection of more than 1,400 donated to the city by Swiss-born Charlotte resident Andreas Bechtler - have never been exhibited publicly in the United States.
The striking terra cotta building - one of only two in this country designed by Swiss architect Mario Botta - is as much a work of art as the pieces inside.
The building was financed by the city and county and built by Wachovia/Wells Fargo for $17million, with Andreas Bechtler contributing $3 million to construction costs.
The museum is part of the South Tryon Street cultural campus, which also includes the Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture, the Knight Theater and the new Mint Museum Uptown, which will open this fall.
At the Bechtler opening, a mix of visitors - families, bohemian types, women in trendy scarves and teens in fleece jackets - seemed equally delighted with the museum.
"I feel like I'm in New York," said Charlottean Fielding Williams, 43.
"I haven't seen such a collection since I was in some European museums," said Mary Kendrick, 41, of Charlotte, who brought her two young sons to the opening.
Four-year-old Ian Kendrick thought the Picasso tapestry looked "kind of Chinese." His 8-year-old brother, Nathan, noticed how much a wooden Max Ernst sculpture looked like "a laundry rack."
Dan Prickett, former chairman of Charlotte's Arts & Science Council board now living in Charleston, made the trip to town just for the opening.
"This is going to draw people into the city in large numbers," he said. "Rarely do you see in one place in America - outside of New York - a collection of this caliber."
In the fourth-floor main gallery, Charlottean Paulette Henry, 48, looked at a framed painter's towel, complete with paint smudges and ragged holes. On the back, it's inscribed to the Bechtler family by artist Joan Miró.
"Different," Henry said with a bemused expression.
"You'd be surprised what can make art these days," said her stepdaughter, Christina Forbes, 19, of Raleigh.
But Emily Lorance, 28, of Belmont, enjoyed the "playfulness" of the same towel. "It's not often you go to a museum and find such personalized messages," she said.
Architect Botta spoke at the ribbon-cutting and drew impromptu building sketches afterward for visitors, including Mecklenburg County Commissioners Chair Jennifer Roberts.
Through an interpreter, he said he "tried to create a little treasure chest within the city" with the Bechtler building.
Judging by Saturday's reaction from the public, the building and its art have managed to do just that. >>"